Hazard Duty
by thinktink2
Summary: Some days don't go as planned. Part of the "Coming to Terms" sphere. Takes place between "Accepting the Consequences" and "Living with the Decision." Stand-alone Ficlet.
AN: I don't know where this idea came from, it just appeared and this is the result.

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"Well aren't you just the sexiest homicide detective this side of the Rockies?"

"Ha, ha," Nick replied curtly, giving her a sallow look.

"What happened?" she asked with a grin, looking him up and down as she rocked side to side in his desk chair.

"Long story," Nick replied, feeling ridiculous in a white biohazard jumpsuit. She on the other hand, looked expensive and educated in a black pencil skirt, cream colored blouse, and a form-fitting black suit jacket, highlighting her shapely frame. Her legs were smooth, tanned, and exposed from mid-thigh on down, adorned in some spiky, shiny black high heels, that must have added a good four inches to her petite height. A camel colored double-breasted trench coat and soft blonde waves completed the look.

"Those booties," Adalind said, looking down at his feet, "Wow, you might want to stand back. There's no telling what I might do to you if you come any closer." He glared and she grinned cheekily in return.

"Very funny."

"Seriously," she said, trying to hide her smile and failing. "You're what they call adorkable, right now. You're so adorkable it's almost hot." She added, taking a sip of her coffee, and if it wasn't for the sight of her brilliant smile, the sparkle of her blue eyes, and the fact he loved her so he would have dumped her out of his chair. He wasn't dumb enough to let the fact she was obviously in good humor go to waste. Likely he could be in good humor later tonight if he played his cards right, and after the afternoon he just had the promise of sex was the only way he was going to make it through the rest of the day. He leaned over her and placed a quick kiss on her lips and she smiled again and sobered a little, looking him over carefully.

"I'm fine," he said.

"I got your message," she replied, ignoring his comment as she continued to sweep her eyes over him until she was satisfied. She swiveled away from him as she reached behind her and held up a paper bag sitting on the ground behind her against his desk. "Jeans, sweater, shoes and socks. I threw in some underwear and a T-shirt, too, in case. The Nick Burkhardt Detective special."

Nick snatched the bag from her and peered at the contents. "You're a life saver," he breathed.

"Your message said to bring you a change of clothes, so I brought you a change of clothes. What happened to your _other_ clothes?"

"Hank," Nick replied shortly.

"Excuse me?" Hank said, striding into the room, wearing a white biohazard suit like Nick's, the rustle of plastic loud with each step. "I'll have you know this is Wu's fault."

"I beg your pardon, Hank, but it was clearly your guys' call to enter the suspect's place, as you are detectives and I am a lowly sergeant," Wu retorted, trailing after Hank.

"You're the same rank as us," Nick replied.

"Still doesn't make me a detective."

"Maybe we can blame the captain," Hank said, falling into his chair. His suit ballooned out like a marshmallow with the compression of air. Adalind covered her mouth with her hand, and Hank sighed and slid the zipper down a little to expel the air faster.

"This was all your idea," Sean said accusingly, and Adalind snorted behind her hand when she caught sight of him. He was wearing a biohazard suit as well, but one clearly not made for someone as tall as he was. It was pulled tightly over his frame, and Sean hunched slightly to try to ease the tug. He shifted uncomfortably and then glared at them.

"I must say Sean, that white's…really not your color," Adalind managed and Sean met her eyes with an unamused stare. "You really must talk to your tailor, too. I'm not sure he's got your measurements quite right."

"What are you doing here?" he asked briskly. Adalind laughed and took another sip of her coffee.

"Nick called and asked me to bring him a change of clothes," she replied, and Sean flicked his eyes to Nick and the bag he held before glancing back at her.

"If you need the name of good tailor, I hear Roberto at _Le Homme_ is wonderful," she continued.

He gave her another dark look. "How nice. You can give Nick his contact information. You owe me a suit, detective." Nick opened his mouth to protest. Sean continued before he could get started.

"I'm going to go home to change. When I come back, you two are going to have this whole mess sorted out, and a report on my desk by end of day."

Sean turned, winced and shifted, pulling down at the leg of his pant. "These things chafe," he muttered, and Nick twisted his mouth in silent agreement as Hank and Wu nodded.

"Of all days for the elevator to be serviced," Wu lamented. Adalind unsuccessfully suppressed another snort of laughter and tried to disguise the slip with a loud sip of her coffee.

"So, seriously, what happened to your other clothes," Adalind asked when Sean left.

"They had to be decontaminated."

"I believe, actually, they were incinerated," Wu replied.

"What did you guys get into?" Adalind asked. Hank shook his head.

"You don't want to know," he said.

"I'm going to shower and change into some sweats," Wu announced.

"You didn't get clean enough at the decontamination tent?" Nick asked.

"That soap dries out my skin," Wu replied. "I've got some cocoa shea butter shower gel that really locks in the moisture." Hank and Nick stared at him in reply.

"Oh, did you like it?" Adalind asked Wu, recognizing the shower gel he was referring to as one she had recommended several months ago when they had somehow or another gotten on the topic of dry skin. Nick turned his head slowly to look at Adalind incredulously, and she shrugged.

"Yeah, it's worked out well," Wu said. Hank shook his head.

"I'm going to see if I can find something to change into and then I'm going to order some food. Anderson's, number 4?" he asked Nick and Nick nodded.

"I'll have a number 6, hold the mayo, extra tomato," Wu called out.

"Got it," Hank said.

"And I," Nick said, grabbing hold of Adalind's hand and tugging her to her feet, "am going to get the hell out of this biohazard suit."

"Need some help with that, do you?" Hank asked with a sly look.

" _After_ I walk Adalind to the el—stairs," Nick added pointedly.

"Sure, buddy. I'm sorry to inform you the showers are communal," Hank said and Nick gave him a squinty-eyed glare and a rude gesture as Adalind followed along quickly behind him.

"There's always the old out-of-order-sign-on-the-bathroom-door trick," Wu replied. "But give me ten minutes first."

"You guys are hilarious," Nick said, letting go of Adalind's hand to guide her out of the department with a warm palm on her back.

"Bye guys," Adalind called. "Where are the showers?" she asked him.

"Second floor."

Nick's desk was on the fourth. He paused at the stairs, heaved a sigh, and then started down beside Adalind, wincing every so often.

Adalind glanced at him as they descended to the third floor.

"Are you wearing anything under there?" she asked him.

"No," Nick said disgustedly. "And it does not feel good." Adalind bit down a smile as they rounded the corner, halfway between floors. He hoped he wouldn't be so tender down there he couldn't enjoy any sympathy she threw his way that night.

"These things are hot and sweaty. They're a biohazard themselves," Nick muttered crankily.

"I'm not sure they're meant to be worn while going commando," Adalind replied.

"They incinerated my underwear," Nick retorted. She choked back another laugh and had to cover her mouth, almost dropping her coffee in the process.

"I'm glad you find my discomfort amusing," Nick said, opening the door to the second floor and stepping out into the corridor. "You should be glad we had Kelly. Cause this," he pointed in the general direction of the suit. "I don't get out of this soon, I might never be able to have children again."

Adalind let out a loud guffaw, snorting loudly, as Nick glared at her.

"I'm sure it's not that serious," Adalind said, punctuating each word with tittering of laughter before she managed a relatively straight face. "Were you wanting more children?" She asked him, eyes that cerulean blue he got lost in. He looked away, realizing they hadn't really discussed such plans, and that as he was in a committed relationship with her any response would presumably include her in that.

"I'd like to at least not have the option taken away," Nick deflected and she nodded agreeably.

"You know that shower gel that Wu and I use is really soothing. Maybe you should ask to borrow some." Nick rolled his eyes at her.

"I'll keep that in mind," he replied drily. "This is my stop," he said, indicating the mens locker room. She nodded. "I'll see you tonight," he said, and she leaned in and placed a kiss on his mouth.

"Okay. See you tonight," she agreed. "Bye."

"Thanks for the clothes," he added, holding up the bag as he stepped back against the door, using his backside to push it open. He almost fell backwards when Wu wrenched it open and hurried out.

"Hey Nick, Adalind. Thanks for waiting. All yours," Wu said, and quickly walked away.

"How did you even get down here so fast?" Nick stammered, waving his hand. "We left before you."

"The elevator!" Wu called. "They're done working on it." To demonstrate he pressed the call button. Adalind heard it ding and then the doors opened and Wu stepped on with a wave before the doors swallowed him up.

"Are you kidding me?" Nick murmured. "I just walked down two flights of stairs and lost a layer of skin—" he cut off abruptly.

Adalind bit her lip, and slid her eyes to Nick. Nick shook his head, still muttering to himself, and backed against the locker room door again before turning and disappearing, the door shutting slowly behind him.

Adalind stared at the door, debating for a beat. She looked down the hall, noting it was sparsely populated, and then back at the locker room door. She took a deep breath and another look around and slipped in.

"You need some help?" Adalind asked, startling Nick as he stood in front of an open locker, his, judging by some of the effects she could see in it. He fumbled and dumped the bag of clothes he was carrying.

"What are you—Adalind, this is the mens locker room."

Adalind shrugged. "I know," she said. "What? It's not like I've never seen the inside of one before," she added and Nick raised an eyebrow. Okay, well, maybe now wasn't the time to get into that.

"You can't be in here," he said.

"Why, you going to arrest me if I stay?" she asked him with a coy smile. "I just wanted to make sure you're okay. You don't have to worry about me taking advantage of you in the locker room. We're just talking."

"No I'm worried someone might walk in here and see us and get the wrong idea."

"That might make for some awkward rumors floating around later, I imagine," she conceded.

"Yeah, Burkhardt can't keep it in his pants," Nick said.

"You probably shouldn't keep it in your pants," Adalind said, in all seriousness. "Airing it out may actually help."

He gave her a look. "What?" she said. Sheesh, men were always so sensitive about what was going on down there. "Besides, I thought you told me you don't care what anyone thinks about you," she reminded him.

He shifted uncomfortably, and unzipped the jumpsuit halfway down his chest, allowing some of his body heat to escape.

"I don't," he said.

"So what's the problem?"

The problem was he cared about what people thought about her. He wasn't deaf to some of the things that had floated around about Adalind, when most of the fourth floor had been introduced to her as the obscenely pregnant mistress or one-night stand that had resulted in Nick's breakup with Juliette. A couple of officers had recognized her from when she had dated Hank briefly. A couple still had recognized her from her visits to Sean's office, and a detective from the precinct had even recognized her as the lawyer Nick had been assigned to protect years ago from an attempt on her life, which is when everyone, if the rumors were to be believed, assumed Nick had started up his relationship with the pretty blonde. Some said nothing, mistresses weren't really all that uncommon in a field that was rife with stress and excesses. Some truly didn't care. Others though had labeled Adalind exactly as they saw her, as Nick had once saw her: a slut or a whore; a badge bunny, given the number of officers she had been with; a homewrecker.

She was none of those things anymore. The mother of his child and the woman he had been living with for a year and a half. In love with for year, maybe more, he conceded. Deeply committed and in love.

He didn't want some asshole patrolman walking in here and finding Adalind and spreading another rumor about her across the precinct. Burkhardt's baby-mama.

"I care what they say about you," he said quietly. She sobered and he wished he hadn't said anything. She was impulsive, he knew; fun. She hadn't truly meant anything by coming in here, other than maybe to tease him a little, which he usually enjoyed.

"What do they say?" she asked, and Nick shook his head.

"No, Nick, what do they say?" he gave her an exasperated look. "That I'm a…a slut? A whore?" she nodded when he didn't say anything. "The whore you knocked up?" she said, and Nick winced. "Well…I was. No getting around that," she said, looking around the room.

"Adalind," Nick interjected.

"Is that a picture of you when you were younger?" she changed the subject, peering at the inside of his locker door. She moved around the bench to see closer, and Nick glanced up at the photo in question. A picture of him in uniform, with some of his old patrol buddies when he had first joined the precinct. Juliette had been standing next to him in the photo but he had cut her out after debating on whether to keep it at all.

"Kelly," she said with a smile, as she caught sight of their son. There was another picture of him, held in Adalind's arms, both of them smiling. He had a similar picture on his desk, taken from the same day and excursion.

"Yeah," Nick said and Adalind smiled again when she caught sight of the photo of her and their son.

"Honestly, we've been together for how long now and they still are saying things like that?" Adalind said suddenly, and Nick sighed. "I mean, I haven't been with anyone but you since just before Diana was born, not that they would know that, I guess," she muttered. Nick glanced up in surprise and quickly schooled his features. He bent down to take the plastic booties off when he saw Adalind frown, obviously not neutralizing his expression fast enough.

"Most of the rumors have died down," he said quietly. Most of the ribbing and the side looks and whispered conversation coming to a halt anytime he came into the room, too. Bad luck he had gotten her pregnant, they all had thought. Forced to do the right thing after carrying on with her for so long.

"Well, who cares what they say or think about me," she said with a toss of her head, blonde hair fanning out delicately. "You and I know the truth. I'm not like that anymore. You've been the only guy for me for a long time now," she bent over him and kissed him gently. "Seriously, what did you guys get into that they had to burn everything you were wearing?" she asked, straightening. Nick shook his head and stood.

"I can't wait to get out of this," he said, pulling the zipper down and then stopping, looking at Adalind pointedly.

"What? I've seen it before," she said, shrugging nonchalantly.

"Don't you have to get back to work?"

"I'm in no rush," she replied. She grabbed the zipper and tugged it down further and peered inside. "Looks uncomfortable," she noted. He snatched the zipper out of her hand as she grinned.

"Goodbye," he said pointedly. She gave him a knowing look and stepped forward again, locking lips with him as she initiated a rather lengthy and thorough kiss. When they broke apart, she was standing on her tip toes, one hand threading through Nick's hair the other gripping his shoulder. Nick pulled his hands away and she stepped back, running her eyes over him, lingering just below his waist, and Nick shifted uncomfortably, as another coy smile appeared on her face.

"Still works, though," she noted, patting his chest as she slipped by him on her way out the door. "Remember what I said about airing it out."

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End file.
